013-2012-12-NOA_Saffron_promotion_-_Copy.doc

December 19, 2012 – Kosovo has returned to growing one of the most celebrated commodities of its rich agricultural past: Saffron.

An intense red color, sweet aroma and pungent flavor combine to make saffron a spice like no other. Saffron’s cost too is unmatched by any other spice: A single gram retails for 10 Euros or more. Gold, by comparison, costs just four times as much.

In Kosovo, a handful of growers, with the support of USAID and other international donors, are re-establishing a saffron industry whose origins date to the 15th century. The growers so far have 6.4 hectares of saffron crocus flowers under production—enough to yield, in 2012, about 5 kilograms of the pricey spice. Testing confirms Kosovo saffron exceeds international first-class standards for taste, color and aroma.

USAID’s New Opportunities for Agriculture (NOA) project supported seven of the growers in purchasing bulbs from the Netherlands, as well as with packaging and branding, and finding new markets. NOA also staged a Dec. 19 promotional event at a Pristina hotel to introduce Kosovo’s saffron producers to local restaurateurs, hoteliers, grocers and consumers. At the event farmers sold 55 grams of saffron which totaled 438 Euros, and in terms of finding new markets – two big buyers emerged: Bio Natural retailer and Hotel Swiss Diamond.

Kosovo today is a net importer of saffron. Already, local growers, including Arber Berisha, are looking beyond just the local market, toward lucrative foreign markets too.

In the last two years, Berisha has planted 150,000 saffron crocus flowers across a half-hectare plot outside the town of Rahovec/Orahovac. He expects to produce about 400 grams of saffron this year. Though he is working with a French partner, Berisha acknowledges he must expand output in order to secure foreign buyers. It’s just one of the challenges faced by growers of such a lucrative but labor-intensive product.

“It’s very difficult work,” Berisha says. “It’s all done by hand.”

Saffron is the stigma of the saffron crocus, a flower that blossoms in the late fall. The violet-colored blooms first are pinched off the stem. Next, their red, threadlike stigma are separated and dried. Roughly 140 to 160 crocus blossoms yield 1 gram of saffron.

Kosovo’s climate, soils and altitude favor saffron cultivation. Low labor costs also help.

“Saffron is an ideal crop, it’s an ideal opportunity, for Kosovo’s small-hold farmers,” says Mark Wood, NOA’s chief of party.

NOA is a four-year initiative that uses market-driven approaches to increase Kosovo’s agriculture output, exports and rural incomes. It supports USAID’s overall strategy in Kosovo to promote growth, create jobs and generate exports.